Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-04
IELTS Writing Task 1 question
The plans below show a college cafe before it was redesigned and how it looks now.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.
The plans below show a college cafe before it was redesigned and how it looks now.
Student answer (Band 5.5)
The given floor plan Illustrates the definition about, college cafe landscape how it's old infrastructure has designed and after change in the design how it is looking today. At a glance, in new design barbecue session and outdoor seating facilities has introduced in new design.
To begin with, Early landscape design of cafe was containing some basic partition of rooms such as a staff dining rooms, huge dine in area, toilets, bin, kitchen and serving area, attached to the kitchen, where all food and drinks was getting served. Moreover, it has a single entry gate for the customers and staff both. However, In new cafe floor plan design, serving area has converted into hot meal serving. and extended features such as a take away food, coffee bar, barbecue and salad bar. Additionally, there are 3 entry options available in new landscape design of cafe. while there is no change in dine in area, it remains the same as before.
To sum up, New design of collage cafe contains more features compare to early design and it became more easy to access and now it has outdoor dine in option as well.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response provides a clear overview of the changes, identifying key features such as the new barbecue area and the increased number of entrances. However, the description of the layout is somewhat imprecise. For instance, stating that the 'dine in area remains the same' is inaccurate, as the plan shows a significant reduction in the size of the indoor seating area to accommodate the new facilities. While the main features are covered, the analysis lacks the precision required for a higher band, as some details are misreported or under-developed. The overview is present but could be more effectively integrated to highlight the most significant transformations.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The response is organised into logical paragraphs, with an introduction, body, and conclusion. Cohesive devices such as 'To begin with', 'Moreover', and 'Additionally' are used to link ideas, though some transitions feel slightly mechanical. The progression of information is generally clear, moving from the old layout to the new one. However, the referencing is occasionally confusing, and the paragraphing could be improved by grouping the specific changes more tightly. Overall, the text is easy to follow, but the flow between sentences could be more natural to achieve a higher level of cohesion.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary is adequate for the task but lacks the precision and variety expected at higher levels. There is some repetition of basic terms like 'design' and 'landscape'. While the student attempts to use topic-specific vocabulary such as 'infrastructure', 'partition', and 'facilities', there are errors in word choice and collocation, such as 'definition about' instead of 'description of' and 'Early landscape design' instead of 'The original layout'. Spelling errors, such as 'collage' instead of 'college', also detract from the overall quality. To improve, the student should focus on using more precise terminology related to floor plans and spatial changes.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The response contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors that occasionally impede clarity. Issues include subject-verb agreement ('facilities has introduced', 'all food and drinks was getting served'), incorrect article usage, and punctuation errors, such as unnecessary full stops in the middle of sentences ('serving. and extended features'). The use of tenses is also inconsistent, with some confusion between past and present descriptions. While the meaning is generally understandable, the high frequency of errors in basic grammar prevents the response from reaching a higher band score.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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